To change your business address in Michigan, file a Certificate of Change of Registered Office (Form 520) with the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs for $5, and then separately update your records with the Michigan Department of Treasury, the IRS, and the Unemployment Insurance Agency if they apply to you. The LARA filing takes care of your state corporate registration only. Every tax and employment account has to be updated on its own.
Before you file anything, figure out which address is actually changing, because Michigan treats two different addresses as separate things.
Registered Office or Principal Office
Your registered office is the Michigan street address on file with LARA where the state and courts deliver legal documents, including lawsuits. Every Michigan corporation and LLC must maintain one, and it has to be a physical street address in Michigan, not a P.O. box. To change it, you file Form 520. The fee is $5 for any entity type.1State of Michigan – LARA. Filing Fees Schedule
Your principal office is where the business actually operates. If your Articles of Incorporation or Articles of Organization name a principal office address and that location is moving, Form 520 will not do the job. You need a Certificate of Amendment to change the language in your articles. That costs $10 for corporations and $25 for LLCs.1State of Michigan – LARA. Filing Fees Schedule If your articles do not list a principal office address, you can skip this step.
Both addresses moving? You file both.
Filing Form 520 With LARA
Form 520 (Certificate of Change of Registered Office and/or Resident Agent) works for domestic and foreign corporations and LLCs.2State of Michigan. Certificate of Change of Registered Office and/or Change of Resident Agent You’ll need:
- Your exact legal entity name as it appears in LARA’s records
- Your current registered office address (and mailing address, if different)
- The new registered office address
- The name of your resident agent, plus a new agent’s name if you’re changing agents at the same time
- A statement that the change was authorized: by board resolution for corporations, or under the operating agreement or by member/manager vote for LLCs3Michigan Legislature. MCL 450.4209 – Michigan Limited Liability Company Act
One catch that causes rejections: the new registered office address and the resident agent’s business address must be the same. Michigan law requires them to match.4Michigan Legislature. MCL 450.1242 – Michigan Business Corporation Act Check your bylaws or operating agreement to confirm who is authorized to sign before you submit, because a signature by the wrong person will get the form kicked back.
Certificate of Amendment for a Principal Office Change
If your articles list a principal office and you’re moving it, use Form 515 for corporations ($10) or Form 715 for LLCs ($25).5State of Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). Certificate of Amendment to the Articles of Organization (LLC) This is a formal amendment to your organizing documents, so it carries the higher fee and slightly more scrutiny than a routine registered office change.
How to Submit and How Long It Takes
You can file online through LARA’s MiBusiness Registry Portal, or mail paper forms to the Corporations, Securities & Commercial Licensing Bureau in Lansing.6State of Michigan. Online Services – Licensing and Regulatory Affairs Online filing gives you immediate confirmation. If you mail your form, certified mail is worth the extra cost so you have proof of delivery.
Standard processing runs several business days. If you need it faster, LARA offers expedited service for an extra fee: $100 for 24-hour turnaround, $200 for same-day, $500 for two-hour, and $1,000 for one-hour.7State of Michigan / Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Domestic Profit and Professional Corporations – Filing Fees For a routine address change, standard processing is almost always fine.
Update the Other Agencies Yourself
LARA does not share your address change with anyone. Every tax and employment account has to be updated separately.
Michigan Department of Treasury
If your business is registered for sales tax, withholding, corporate income tax, or any other Michigan tax, update your address through Michigan Treasury Online at mto.treasury.michigan.gov, or file Form 163 (Notice of Change or Discontinuance) by mail to the Registration Section in Lansing.8Michigan Department of Treasury. 163, Notice of Change or Discontinuance Form 163 handles legal address, mailing address, or both. If your ownership is also changing, you’ll need to file a new Registration for Michigan Taxes (Form 518) on top of the address update.
Internal Revenue Service
The IRS uses Form 8822-B for business address changes. The same form covers changes to your mailing address, business location, and responsible party. If you’re changing your responsible party (the person who controls the entity’s funds), the IRS requires notification within 60 days. For a simple mailing address update, no specific deadline is listed, but the sooner you file, the sooner refunds and notices reach the right place.9Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party – Business
Unemployment Insurance Agency
Employers registered with Michigan’s Unemployment Insurance Agency can update their address through the MiWAM online account or by submitting Form UIA 1025. The paper form has to be signed and dated with the signer’s title and phone number, or it will not be processed.10State of Michigan: Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity – Unemployment Insurance Agency. Employer Request for Name/Address Change (UIA 1025)
Professional Licenses
Licenses through LARA’s Bureau of Professional Licensing are maintained separately from your corporate registration. Address-only changes can be submitted on the Bureau’s name and address update form at no cost, and you don’t need a reprinted license. Some fields, including cosmetology and barbering, require the update through Michigan’s MiPLUS portal instead. And if the license is tied to a physical location that gets inspected, you cannot simply change the address on file. You have to submit a new license application for the new location.11State of Michigan. Request for Name and/or Address Update
DBAs and Local Records
If you operate under an assumed name, where the DBA is filed depends on the entity behind it. Sole proprietors and general partnerships file DBAs at the county level, so an address change goes through the county clerk’s office where the DBA is registered. County-level DBA address changes typically cost around $10.12Branch County, Michigan. Doing Business As (DBA)
Corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, and assumed names owned by corporations file at the state level, not the county.12Branch County, Michigan. Doing Business As (DBA) If you’re not sure which category your DBA falls into, ask your county clerk.
Local licenses, zoning permits, and municipal registrations are separate again. Contact your city or county directly, because requirements and fees vary and lapses can affect permit renewals and zoning compliance.
Foreign Entities Registered in Michigan
Out-of-state businesses authorized to do business in Michigan have the same duty to keep the registered office current. Foreign corporations use Form 520 and pay the same $5 fee as domestic filers, with the statement including corporate name, old and new registered office addresses, resident agent information, and confirmation that the board authorized the change.4Michigan Legislature. MCL 450.1242 – Michigan Business Corporation Act Foreign LLCs follow a parallel process under Section 209 of the Limited Liability Company Act.3Michigan Legislature. MCL 450.4209 – Michigan Limited Liability Company Act Amending a foreign LLC’s certificate of authority (as opposed to just changing the registered office) runs $25.1State of Michigan – LARA. Filing Fees Schedule Check your home state’s rules too, since some states require notification of any address change in a state where you’re qualified.
What Happens If You Skip It
An outdated address at LARA usually shows up in the mail you never receive. Annual report notices go to the old address, filing deadlines pass, and the consequences build.
For corporations, failing to file annual reports for two consecutive years can lead to administrative dissolution, meaning LARA terminates the entity’s legal existence.13State of Michigan: Corporations Division. Corporations Division Frequently Asked Questions For LLCs, missed annual filings put the company in “not good standing” status, which blocks certain filings including voluntary dissolution. Getting the entity restored means filing all overdue reports, paying accumulated fees, and sometimes filing a Certificate of Restoration.
The bigger risk is service of process. If your business is sued and legal papers go to an address you vacated, a court can enter a default judgment against you. By the time you learn about it, the deadline to respond is gone, and setting the judgment aside is difficult.
Miss correspondence from the Michigan Department of Treasury or the IRS and you can add missed payments, penalties, and interest to the list. A $5 filing prevents a lot of expensive surprises.